The Democracy Action Lab (DAL) at the Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law (CDDRL) and the Stanford Society for Latin American Politics (SSLAP) will host a discussion on the evolving crisis of democracy in Peru, centered on the concept of “democratic hollowing,” a form of democratic erosion driven not by the concentration of power, but by its fragmentation and weakening.

Since 2016, Peru has had eight presidents. This is perhaps the clearest indicator of the depth and nature of its political crisis. Over the past decade, Peru has experienced severe democratic instability, marked by political hyperfragmentation, institutional conflict, and social unrest. Rather than following the classic pattern of democratic backsliding driven by the concentration of power, Peru illustrates a different pathway: democratic erosion through the dilution of power. This process, described as democratic hollowing, involves weak parties, fragmented political actors, and the erosion of representation, leading to governance paralysis, short-term political incentives, and an increasing reliance on coercion as a substitute for effective democratic authority. In this conversation with Alberto Vergara, we will explore Peru’s current political landscape, examine the characteristics of this pathway of erosion — described as democratic hollowing — and discuss the institutional interventions that could help steer the country toward democratic renewal.

The event will feature a conversation with Alberto Vergara and will bring together academic and policy perspectives to examine how democracies can decay even in the absence of a dominant authoritarian leader.

SPEAKER

Alberto Vergara - Professor at the Department of Social and Political Sciences at the Universidad del Pacífico (Lima, Peru)

MODERATOR

Alberto Díaz-Cayeros — Senior Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, Professor, by courtesy, of Political Science, and Co-Director of DAL